In the book "Our Gods Wear Spandex: The Secret History of Comic Book Heroes," Christopher Knowles examines the roots some popular comic characters have in the occult and ancient mythology and has discovered the cover to "Action Comics" #1 may be the ultimate swipe!
http://www.comicbookresources.com/ne...m.cgi?id=12453
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11-23-2007, 11:30 AM #1Mild-Mannered Reporter
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"Our Gods Wear Spandex" Reveals Secret History of Comic Book Heroes
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11-23-2007, 11:42 AM #2Were You There?
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Actually, being the first ever superhero cover, it would be the exact opposite of the ultimate swipe.
"If you can't say anything good about someone, sit right here by me." - Alice Roosevelt Longworth, on manners
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11-23-2007, 10:07 PM #3Nyah!
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Not to mention there's barely a resemblance at all. I have sincere doubts that it's any kind of swipe.
'Dox out.
"The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it." - Neil deGrasse Tyson
"Can it, you nit!" - Violet Beauregard
"And Paradox is never correct. About anything."- Kid Omega
Decorum & Friends (A City of Heroes archive)
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11-23-2007, 10:12 PM #4internet pope
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What Dox said. They're only remotely similar; the left arm and the legs are in completely different positions.
Originally Posted by CBR News
Sounds like nothing more than rationalization to me. Quite a stretch of logic.howyadoin?
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11-23-2007, 10:15 PM #5Cat smells like fish
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His legs are in different positions, the arms are in different positions, his body is turned slightly differently... and I don't think Schuster owned a lightbox.
The Punisher: I’m going to cauterize your rectum, sealing it shut, so when you turn those delicious Pink Pants™ Fruit Pies into waste products the bilirubin in your feces will leach into your bloodstream and you’ll die screaming! And I’ll watch while having sex with this grateful prostitute!
Trussed-Up Hooker: Blueberry are my favorite!
In other words, what StoneGold said.
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11-23-2007, 10:16 PM #6Senior Member
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Wow. That's completely inferior to any swiping that Land has done. Like everyone else, I don't see much of a resemblence. That isn't the only place I've ever seen a pose like that....
2007 Avengers League Champion VISION WAR MACHINE YELLOWJACKET BLACK KNIGHT SPIDER-WOMAN MANTIS
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11-23-2007, 10:22 PM #7Senior Member
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The more important topic here is...
Which one of these guys swiped the other guy's costume design? The one of the far left or the one on the far right?
2007 Avengers League Champion VISION WAR MACHINE YELLOWJACKET BLACK KNIGHT SPIDER-WOMAN MANTIS
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11-23-2007, 10:24 PM #8Veteran Member
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Well, Shuster might have liked the pose and given superman a similar one because it seemed mythological. If anything, it's an homage.:D
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11-24-2007, 08:27 AM #9New Member
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You're not looking in the right places, gents. I don't make these kinds of claims lightly. I've spent hours and hours going over this issue. Working with images like this is what I do for a living.
Come over to my blog- there's a whole wealth of diagrams, overlays, and comparisons. I've got an essay by a very prominent Golden Age historian on this topic and all sorts of background information.
http://secretsun.blogspot.com
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11-24-2007, 08:55 AM #10Were You There?
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It's still not ultimate. Originally Posted by CLKnowles
You're not looking in the right places, gents. I don't make these kinds of claims lightly. I've spent hours and hours going over this issue. Working with images like this is what I do for a living.
Come over to my blog- there's a whole wealth of diagrams, overlays, and comparisons. I've got an essay by a very prominent Golden Age historian on this topic and all sorts of background information.
http://secretsun.blogspot.com"If you can't say anything good about someone, sit right here by me." - Alice Roosevelt Longworth, on manners
"It's not whether you win or lose, it's whether I win or lose." - Peter David, on life
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11-24-2007, 08:56 AM #11Nyah!
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OK, looked over the pics.
I think your stretching like Mr. Fantastic.'Dox out.
"The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it." - Neil deGrasse Tyson
"Can it, you nit!" - Violet Beauregard
"And Paradox is never correct. About anything."- Kid Omega
Decorum & Friends (A City of Heroes archive)
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11-24-2007, 09:28 AM #12Cat smells like fish
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Now I see it even less. Like one and a half of the lines you drew match up with anything. Originally Posted by CLKnowles
You're not looking in the right places, gents. I don't make these kinds of claims lightly. I've spent hours and hours going over this issue. Working with images like this is what I do for a living.
Come over to my blog- there's a whole wealth of diagrams, overlays, and comparisons. I've got an essay by a very prominent Golden Age historian on this topic and all sorts of background information.
http://secretsun.blogspot.comThe Punisher: I’m going to cauterize your rectum, sealing it shut, so when you turn those delicious Pink Pants™ Fruit Pies into waste products the bilirubin in your feces will leach into your bloodstream and you’ll die screaming! And I’ll watch while having sex with this grateful prostitute!
Trussed-Up Hooker: Blueberry are my favorite!
In other words, what StoneGold said.
-Expletive Deleted
Check out my travel site, Geekations.com
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11-24-2007, 09:31 AM #13Mood Indigo
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Mr. Knowles: Is your conclusion that Jerry Siegel was "deeply interested in the occult" based on more than resemblances between Lex Luthor and Aleister Crowley?
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11-24-2007, 10:06 AM #14New Member
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It is. Originally Posted by Indigo Al
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11-24-2007, 10:14 AM #15New Member
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Time will tell. I've got two of the top Golden Age scholars interested in this story and what I plan to do is hand it over to people who specialize in this sort of thing for their analysis. I've put up a new overlay showing the key points of placement and that's really as far as I can go with it. Plus, I do have a job and stuff! Originally Posted by Paradox
This wasn't supposed to take on a life of its own like this, it was originally supposed to be an illustration of a topic in an essay on how the NeoClassical movement had an enormous influence on the kids like Siegel and Shuster who developed the modern superhero. I'd recommend anyone interested in the history check out a good book on mythological art, particularly its evolution from ancient to Renaissance to Art Deco. Kirby was especially influenced by Art Deco, particularly when his work exploded in the mid-60's. It's almost like all of those angles and squiggles had been gestating in his mind for 30-odd years.
cheers, CKLast edited by CLKnowles; 11-24-2007 at 10:16 AM. Reason: sp
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